Kin of fishermen detained in UAE not to vote

Fishermen who owe allegiance to the South Asian Fishermen’s Fraternity (SAFF) met Kanyakumari collector/district election officer Sajjan Singh R Chavan on Saturday and handed over a petition to this effect. Of the 23 fishermen, 19 are from Kanyakumari district, one from Idinthakarai in Tirunelveli district and the remaining three are from Thoothukudi district. 

SAFF general secretary Fr A Churchill said the fishermen were hired by Mathar Ali and Jamal Ali of UAE in October 2013 for fishing in the gulf. “The 23 fishermen accompanied by two Dubai fishermen went for fishing on April 4, 2014, in two launches from Ajaman. On April 13, one of the Dubai fishermen Kames went missing and his decomposed body was recovered 10 days later,” he said. 

The 23 Indian fishermen were left abandoned on May 30 as their sponsor had taken away their official documents. Their food and accommodation needs were met by Tamils in Sharjah and the Indian Embassy at Abu Dhabi. Now the case lies in Abu Dhabi court and though the fishermen were found innocent, their passports are still with the Abu Dhabi court, Fr Churchill added. 

“No murder case has been registered against the fishermen. Nine of them have been cited as witnesses to the death of the UAE national. With the matter pending before the court for the last two years, it is important that the state and central governments do the needful to get them home as early as possible,” Churchill stated. 

The fishermen’s relatives blame the state and central governments for not acting swiftly as the case has seen repeated postponements. With the latest hearing having taken place on Monday, their relatives are at their wits end as “most of them are the breadwinners for their families,” a relative of an affected fisherman citing anonymity said.

The petition to the collector stated that not only would the family and relatives numbering nearly 1,000 boycott the election, they would also not allow candidates to canvass for votes.